We all know that reading books builds a bridge between our life and the unknown world. In our country, people read books at any time. They enjoy reading books even when they’re on a break at the beach, or relaxing from a hike. Good reading habits lead you to a lifelong love of books. Here are some tips on how to develop good reading habits.
Choose the books which suit you. In most middle schools, teachers give students a reading list every few weeks. Most books are easy to read, like youth novels. The students themselves can also buy books which they’re interested in or the best-selling books.
Reading in short periods. 15 minutes after getting to school, 15 minutes while waiting for friends, 15 minutes before going to sleep. Then you can read books for about five hours every week in total.
Talk about your reading with your family or friends. This helps you have a better understanding.
How to | |
| What to read | 1. Read the books which 2. Read the books that you’re interested in. 3. Read the books which can be the best-selling. |
| 1. Read after getting to school. 2. Read while waiting for friends. 3. Read before going to sleep. The | |
| Who to talk with | Talk about your reading with your family or friends. This helps you |
Many students may have time to enjoy after-school activities because of the double reduction policy（双减政策）. Some students can play sports. Some students can go to learn music. Other students can draw or practice calligraphy（书法）and more. Many people believe after-school activities are fun and good for students.
But why should students do after-school activities? Here are some good reasons. First, doing an after-school activity is a good short break from studying. Second, students can make some friends while doing after-school activities. Third, students can get some new skills from the activities.
1. Why may many students have time to enjoy after-school activities?2. Who do many people believe after-school activities are good for?
3. How many good reasons are there for doing after-school activities?
4. Can students get any new skills from the activities?
5. What do you think of the double reduction policy?
3 . Do you know how to cook, clean or grow plants? If not, you will soon. These will be part of labor（劳动） education starting this autumn.
A new standard for labor education recently came out. Students in primary and middle school will have at least one labor education class a week. They will try and experience different kinds of labor and learn different life skills and even job skills. The standard includes different tasks for each grade. For example, students in Grade 5 and Grade 6 will learn to cook two or three common dishes, like fried eggs or egg soup with tomatoes.
Labor education can enrich Chinese students’ life. Chinese school education didn’t pay enough attention to this in the past. According to a 2019 report, Chinese kids only do 12 minutes of practical activity each day.
The new standard also calls on families to take part in students’ labor education. They will make housework lists to help students be more independent.
Besides housework skills, students will have a chance to try new technologies like 3D printing. They will also learn to make traditional handicrafts （手工艺品）.
1. According to the passage, when will labor education start?| A．This autumn. | B．Next year. | C．Two years later. |
| A．learn only one life skill |
| B．learn to cook two or three common dishes |
| C．have at least two labor education classes a week |
| A．enrich students’ life |
| B．make parents do more housework |
| C．make students have less school work |
| A．By making housework lists. |
| B．By doing homework for the students. |
| C．By asking students to do everything at home. |
| A．Try 3D printing. | B．Make traditional handicrafts. | C．Sell things online. |
4 . Many people like to watch TV. There are all kinds of programs on TV. The soap opera is one of them. The soap opera was first on the radio in the 1920s. Then it started on TV in the 1940s.
Why do so many people like to watch soap opera on TV, especially young people? What makes soap opera popular? Let’s find out.
First, what’s happening in the soap opera is very different from our life. Everything is perfect in the play. People don’t need to worry about almost anything. People don’t have money problems.
Second, there are many beautiful girls and handsome boys in the soap opera. They are so cool. They make young people crazy. They make young people happy.
Third, the story in the soap opera is usually interesting. It makes people relaxed after a day’s hard work. Even some old people like to watch it, too.
But some people don’t like it. They think the show is too slow and too long. Do you like watching soap opera? What do you think of it?
1. The soap opera started on TV__________.| A．in the 1920s | B．in the 1930s | C．in the 1940s | D．in the 1950s |
| A．very different from | B．the same as | C．as interesting as | D．crazier than |
| A．The money problems | B．The perfect stories |
| C．The interesting stories | D．The beautiful girls and handsome boys |
| A．the show is too long and too slow | B．it can make people sad |
| C．it can make people relaxed | D．it started on TV early |
| A．The people in the soap opera don’t need to worry about anything. |
| B．All people like to watch soap opera. |
| C．The story in the soap opera is usually interesting. |
| D．The girls and boys in the soap opera are usually cool. |
5 . On the bottom of most plastic packaging（包装）, there’s a small triangle （三角）with a letter or a number written inside. These little symbols are not easy to be noticed, but are really important. They tell you what kind of plastic it is and whether it can be recycled or not.
Can it be recycled? | Types of Plastic |
√ |   Pet This is the plastic that you often see on supermarket shelves! It’s used to make plastic water bottles and biscuit boxes. |
√ |   HDPE HDPE is a stronger type of plastic. It is what milk bottles are made of. |
× |   LDPE LDPE is a very soft plastic which is not easily broken. It is what shopping bags are made of. |
× |   PS (POLYSTYRENE] This plastic is often seen in our daily life. You’ll probably have seen it as those cheap white cups you get hot drinks in, or as takeaway food packaging. |
| A．PET | B．HDPE | C．LDPE | D．PS |
| A．Milk bottles. | B．Hot drink white cups. |
| C．Drinking water bottles. | D．Takeaway food packaging. |
| A．To introduce types of plastic. | B．To display reusable items. |
| C．To explain recycling methods. | D．To recommend shopping bags. |
6 . Different countries have different customs and cultures. Every culture around the world has different customs and ways of communicating. When you learn a language, you learn more than words.
In China, people are used to saying “sorry” to show that they regret doing something wrong. But it’s very proud for American people to have polite manners towards one another in public. They often use the word “sorry”—even when they don’t really mean it! Usually, if they want to ask a stranger for the time, they will start by saying “Sorry to trouble you.” If they’re five minutes late for the appointment, they will greet the person by saying “Sorry, I’m late!” It’s quite different in China. They use the word “sorry” in so many different situations that the meaning of the word has changed a little over time. The two main dictionary definitions (定义) of “sorry” are: 1) feeling sad for someone else because of their problems or bad luck; 2) feeling regret because you’ve done something wrong.
So what does “sorry” really mean? And why do western people use it so much? Well, in western culture, saying “sorry” is a way to be polite. It’s also a very clever way to get what they want. If you want to borrow something from others, you’d better say “sorry” to them about something. Or it’s hard for you to get what you want. So maybe saying “sorry” is not only just being polite, but also a good method to get what you want!
1. How many examples of the use of “sorry” are given by Americans in the second paragraph?| A．Two. | B．Three. | C．Four. | D．Five. |
| A．When they regret doing something wrong. |
| B．When they ask strangers for help. |
| C．When they greet people for the first time. |
| D．When they arrive at a place early. |
| A．Idea. | B．Class. | C．Date | D．Safety. |
| A．Japan. | B．China. | C．Korea. | D．Germany. |
| A．How to Say “Sorry” Correctly. | B．The Different Meanings of “Sorry”. |
| C．Why Western People Say “Sorry” | D．Why Chinese People Say “Sorry” |
7 . We have been used to wearing masks（口罩）in public since February 2020. About 300 million masks are used and then thrown away every day in China. Where do these masks go? You might think they just go into a rubbish bin. But that’s just the first stop on the masks journey.
After the masks are thrown into rubbish bins, rubbish trucks take the rubbish to collection areas. Next, the masks will be burned. Won’t burning masks cause pollution? The answer is no. According to scientists, it doesn’t produce harmful things.
In fact, the main material of most masks is polypropylene（聚丙烯）. After burning, it changes into water and CO2. The process（过程）of burning the rubbish can produce electricity. Burning one ton of rubbish can produce more than 400 kilowatt hours（度）of electricity. There will be 162, 000 tons of used masks in China this year. Burning all of them can produce more than 64 million kilowatt hours of electricity. This is enough to make an electric car drive about 370 million km.
At last, the waste from burning masks can be recycled to make bricks（砖块）or fill the roads.
1. How many masks are used and then thrown away every day in China?| A．About 64 million. | B．About 300 million. |
| C．About 370 million. | D．More than 400 million. |
| A．electricity factories | B．rubbish trucks | C．rubbish bins | D．mask factories |
| A．Burning used masks is environmentally friendly. |
| B．Many people disagree with wearing masks in public. |
| C．The process of burning the masks can produce bricks. |
| D．There are 162, 000 tons of used masks every month in China. |
| A．How do we burn used masks? | B．How do people produce electricity? |
| C．Where do the used masks go? | D．Why do we throw away used masks? |
 | |
The traditional Chinese lunar calendar（农历）divides the year into 24 solar terms（节气）. It’s very useful for people’s life and work. Let’s have a look. | |
 | Start of Spring, the first solar term of the year, falls on February 4 this year. After Start of Spring, the daytime is becoming longer and the weather is becoming warmer. And people eat spring pancakes and spring rolls on the day. |
 | Summer Solstice, the 10th solar term, falls on June 21 this year. Summer Solstice is not the hottest time in a year. The hottest days often come 20 to 30 days later. People have a tradition of eating noodles on the day. |
 | Autumn Equinox, the 16th solar term, falls on September 23 this year. On this day, day and night are of equal length（等长）. After this day, days get shorter and nights get longer in the northern hemisphere（北半球）. In South China, people eat Qiucai, a kind of wild amaranth（苋菜）. |
 | Major Snow, or “Daxue” in Chinese, is the 21st solar term, and it falls on December 7 this year. The arrival of Major Snow marks the beginning of midwinter. Daxue does not necessarily have more snowfall but the possibility of snowy days grows bigger. People have the custom to eat lamb（羊肉）and porridge. |
| A．on February 4 | B．on June 21 | C．on September 23 | D．on December 7 |
| A．Start of Spring | B．Major Snow | C．Autumn Equinox | D．Summer Solstice |
| A．Spring pancakes. | B．Noodles. | C．Amaranth. | D．Lamb. |
A picture speaks a thousand words. And nowadays, people like to use emojis to show their words instead of speaking or writing. According to some experts, the Emoji is the language which develops the fastest in the UK’s history. Now in Britain, emojis are becoming more popular than short forms like “lol” (laughing out loud), or “muah” (the sound of a kiss). They are leading a new way of communication and are even thought as art!
“Big red heart” emojis seem to be well loved! Because using these emojis makes the text full of personal characters. People can have fun when they use emojis to express themselves. What’s more, using emojis can make people laugh. Teenagers in the UK also said that they really enjoyed the fact that emojis are quick and easy.
People also express their feelings by using the emojis which they like best. Have you noticed the emojis you recently used? They may show how you feel these days. In the UK, emojis like “face with tears of joy”, “face blowing a kiss” and “love heart” are the most commonly used. At least, with the use of emojis, British people may be more fun than people think! People can also learn a lot about a culture from their emoji complaints. For example, before the emoji “cheese wedge (奶酪块)” appeared, British people were always complaining that there was no cheese emoji!
Emojis are now greatly popular, but what is the future of them? Will the emoji soon be more than English as an international language? Or will the emoji be forgotten when the next big thing comes along? It is hard to say.
1. What can we learn from the first paragraph?| A．People prefer speaking to enjoying pictures. |
| B．The Emoji develops fastest in the world. |
| C．Emojis have been widely accepted recently. |
D．More people like using “LOL” than “ ”. |
| A．they bring laughter and joy |
| B．they make people smarter |
| C．they are more convenient |
| D．they can show people’s personality |
| A．By telling stories. | B．By giving examples. |
| C．By comparing facts. | D．By raising questions. |
| A．Emojis — A personal art | B．Emojis — An international symbol |
| C．Emojis — An amazing discovery | D．Emojis — A popular language |
10 . Have you ever imagined your simple T-shirt could act as an air conditioner (空调) on those hot summer days? Thanks to a discovery, that possibility is getting closer and the T-shirt may soon be found among your favorite clothing brands.
Two inventors took a completely new method. They designed a special textile (纺织品) that can take in body heat and then send out the energy. This new textile cools both the objects and things around them through a technology. This means that a T-shirt made of this textile looks like a normal T-shirt, but actually it is a device (设备) that works like a mirror.
Although the technology is not new and has been used for years to design plastic films and special paints, its use in the textile industry for the good of wearers is very special and exciting. That is because, in the past, the methods we used to deal with heat through clothes were only the suggestions on wearing light colors and choosing breathable textiles. But even when these suggestions can actually help you feel cool, they are simply not enough in the hottest season. The new textile, however, can reflect all kinds of light, and this can contribute to the cooling process. So this discovery is a real advance.
Right now, researchers still need to test the new method to know how effectively (有效) the new textile works while the wearers are standing or walking, and not directly facing the sky. They also need to test how well it works when T-shirts are not close to the skin. But it’s still a great success.
The two inventors are now looking out for clothing brands that are interested in using their textile. One inventor said, “The new material will increase clothing producing costs by just 10 percent. We can make it with large production. Everybody can afford a T-shirt made of this textile and the cost is basically the same as a normal T-shirt’s. It can do good to everybody.”
1. What can the new textile do?| A．Make wearers feel cool. | B．Make wearers fashionable. |
| C．Get wearers’ health information. | D．Test wearers’ body temperatures. |
| A．减缓 | B．促进 | C．接收 | D．扰乱 |
| A．Making money by selling the textile. | B．Trying to use the textile in other fields. |
| C．Trying to find out more secrets of the textile. | D．Looking for clothing brands to use the textile. |
| A．A Popular Brand | B．Two Great Inventors | C．A Special Textile | D．Lucky Wearers |
